


under the bowl of stars

by annella



Category: Final Fantasy VII (Video Game 1997), Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020)
Genre: F/F, First Kiss, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-20
Updated: 2020-09-20
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:14:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26560474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/annella/pseuds/annella
Summary: It’s the first night sleeping under the stars after leaving Midgar. Tifa loves it; Aerith is distressed by the wide open sky.
Relationships: Aerith Gainsborough/Tifa Lockhart
Comments: 1
Kudos: 68





	under the bowl of stars

**Author's Note:**

> First time writing Aerti! I’m going to write more of it, I think. :)

The first night they spent out of Midgar, Tifa slept under the stars and dreamed of home. Not the burning wreckage that had haunted her dreams on darker nights; she dreamed of the gabled houses, the mountains, the warmth of family and friends.

For five years, all she had seen above her was the metal plate, the belching smog, the sky so distant it was like a dream. She missed the open sky desperately, with a longing that was almost tangible, so despite the tents they’d bought at a small village just outside Midgar, Tifa chose to unroll her blankets on the ground beneath the wide bowl of night.

She awoke in the middle of the night to the sound of someone saying her name.

“Tifa?” The voice was soft, almost as if the speaker didn’t want to be heard.

“Aerith?” Tifa looked at her friend, sitting not far away from her with her knees drawn up to her chest. “What’s wrong?”

Aerith let out a nervous laugh, shaking her head. “Aren’t you terrified out here?” she asked, looking up at the sky.

“Not at all.” Tifa sat up, her blankets falling down to her waist. “I like it; it’s peaceful. Much better than that steel sky.” She shuddered.

“I miss it,” Aerith said softly. “This is...it’s so much. So much empty air. So much possibility.” Her gaze went to the sky again, and Tifa realised she was trembling.

“Aerith—are you alright?” She crawled out of her bed, coming to sit next to Aerith on the rocky ground. She took Aerith’s hands, surprised to find them clammy and cold in the relatively warm night.

Aerith laughed again, sounding like she was forcing it out. “Not really, to tell the truth.” She tightened her grip on Tifa’s hands. “I’ve never been out under the sky like this. It’s—it just keeps going.” 

“Do you want to lie here next to me?” Tifa asked, putting an arm around Aerith’s narrow shoulders and pulling her close. “I can’t make the sky go away, but we can talk. I can distract you.”

“Distract me?” Aerith laughed again, a different sound this time—a warm, throaty laugh which made Tifa’s knees tremble a little. She leaned into Tifa’s arm, her head resting on her shoulder, and from this close, Tifa could easily smell the flowery scent of her hair.

It was the scent of the flower Cloud gave her—now lost in the wreckage of the bar, and smelling it again nearly brought her to tears. She pushed the thought aside and instead focused on Aerith, on the here and now. Her friend was upset, and Tifa wanted to help.

It had absolutely nothing to do with wanting to steal another chance to have Aerith close to her.

“Come on—there’s room here for two.” She helped Aerith to her feet, and they lay down together on Tifa’s makeshift bed and pulled the blankets up. It was lumpy and uncomfortable, but Aerith curled her body into Tifa’s like she belonged there, and Tifa bit her lip.

“You’re warm,” Aerith said, her slender arm sliding around Tifa’s waist. Tifa could feel her breasts pressing up against her side, and she tentatively put both arms around her, pulling her close.

“Is this better?” 

“It’s definitely distracting,” Aerith murmured, and tilted her head up to press her lips against Tifa’s neck.

_ Oh. _

“Is this okay?” Aerith asked, her voice so soft Tifa barely heard her through the thrumming pulse echoing in her ears. All those times they’d been _almost but not quite_ _there_ were crowding Tifa’s mind. The journey through the sewers—the first time she’d had the chance to hold Aerith in her arms, even if it was after saving her from plunging into the filthy water. The way Aerith comforted her before the pillar fell. The sheer joy at finding her alive and well in Hojo’s lab and relief in Aerith’s eyes at seeing her. 

“Of course it is,” Tifa replied, relieved laughter filling her voice.

“Shh,” Aerith whispered, kissing Tifa’s neck again, “we don’t want to wake the boys.” She shifted, her mouth travelling up to Tifa’s earlobe, and then across to her mouth. Tifa gasped at the first touch of Aerith’s lips to hers, soft and delicate and warm, and before she knew it, Aerith’s mouth was open, her tongue sliding between Tifa’s lips, a throaty moan ringing in Tifa’s ears as they kissed. She felt it all the way down to her core, fiery warmth spreading out from between her legs, and she pulled Aerith on top of her.

Aerith let out a whimper. “Do you want—should we—” she started. Her hand slid down to gently cup Tifa’s breast, her thumb finding and rubbing over the nipple through her top.

As much as Tifa wanted to get Aerith’s clothes off, to get her fingers and tongue into her, the other tent was only a few metres away, and Cloud was a notoriously light sleeper. She didn’t want his heightened senses hearing them—she’d never be able to look him in the face again.

She kissed Aerith again, more gently, and stroked her hair. “I do. But not here.” Another kiss, warm and wet and needy. Shiva, but she wanted this girl so badly. “But we should get to Kalm soon, and we’ll find a place to stay where it’s just the two of us.”

Aerith nodded. “Can I stay tonight?”

“Of course!” Tifa let Aerith slip down so she was on her side, an arm and leg slung over Tifa. “Have I ever told you how I ended up in Midgar?”

“No, but I’d love to hear it!”

Tifa smiled, kissing Aerith’s forehead as she began the tale.

**Author's Note:**

> This is for theturkstwostep over on twitter. :)
> 
> Speaking of twitter, come follow me over @ sherribon. I post a lot of Turks stuff.


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